To Be A Miner.

Gareth Thomas 

Mining for me started as a boy following in my Father’s and Grandfather’s footsteps, initially in open cast and later in underground mines.

Mining has always fascinated me, the fact that material extracted from the ground could be used to create so many products.

This went on to determine my direction in life. It taught me to strive for my ambitions and make them a reality. The mining communities that gave life to me were themselves born out of mining and the need for coal, be it for electrical power, for locomotives, for steel making, for the manufacture of sugar and so much more. This helped fuel the industrial revolution and drove innovation beyond our wildest dreams. From Trevithick to the Stevensons to Isambard Kingdom Brunel to the Wright brothers, Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, all owe their success to the materials that were first mined - then processed, moulded or burned - allowing them to create the engineering marvels that have fuelled human expansion.

So what does mining mean to me? It means that we should not forget who we are, we should not forget where the materials come from that provide us with everyday things that we take for granted. From a simple needle for sewing your clothes to a piece of glass, to the space shuttle, the materials that allowed these to be created was first mined. 

None of this would have been possible if the miner did not exist.

To be a miner, you need to be determined and stubborn but smart. You need to respect your surroundings and do your best to protect others as well as yourself. But above all, you need to work as a team for nothing is achieved on your own.

Of Earth For Earth (2020)

GARETH THOMAS

Gareth Thomas is the Managing Director of Metal Innovations UK, with over 30 years experience in equipment design, manufacture, open cut mining and underground mining, starting in 1981. 1991 he founded SL Engineering Ltd, and designed the first hydraulic walls in the world for Brent Walker at the Cardiff International Arena, now known as the Motor Point Arena. These were displayed in operation to HM the Queen when she opened the arena in 1993. He has designed mines, river dredges, excavators and many more, and has travelled overseas, exporting skills and equipment. “It has been my life’s ambition to bring work home to Wales and the UK, to at least play a part in providing work and income for the communities I grew up in”.